bring it on

Summer is here and it is glorious. Days in a row of 35 degree temperatures, swimming in the sea and the pool, sticky weather that demands gin & tonics, watermelon and barbecues in the park. Northern Europe has been going through a heat wave for the past few weeks, and while the temperatures can't compare with what the east coast of the US has been coping with it has still been pretty damn hot. There is no air conditioning here, not at work nor at home, so days of constant 35 degrees add up. But when the heat means skirts and sandals, train trips to the beach, fun with (young) old friends in Amsterdam, and more summer produce than I know what to do with, I am one happy chicken.

I meant to make a list of things I wanted to do this summer, but summer arrived before I had a chance. We have already had a birthday barbecue in our neighborhood park, rented a Strandkorb on the Baltic (so silly and yet so practical), eaten basil spaghetti, slept with only a sheet and had some quality balcony sitting. There is yet more to come - a weekend on a North Sea island, hopefully another train trip to the beach, peaches and apricots and baby artichokes, tomatoes tomatoes tomatoes, and maybe a trip to Berlin. Last but not least will be vacation in the US to see family and friends and enjoy the tail end of the east coast summer. Corn on the cob, I'm coming for you.

Cherry season has been going for a few weeks now, and my absolute favorite thing to do with cherries is make clafoutis. Any kind of cherries (or really, any other fruit) will be delicious, but I think the best are dark red sweet cherries. Here they are called Knubberkirschen and there are countless varieties, but they are generally similar to Bing cherries. (Knubber somehow refers to the fact that they are kind of crunchy and meaty.) The best part is, there is no need to pit them, you're supposed to just spit out the pits as you eat. I've made this twice in the past week and somehow I don't think I'll be stopping any time soon. As long as I can say knubberkirschen and clafoutis, all is right (if slightly linguistically confused) in the world.


Cherry Clafoutis
(adapted slightly from this ceres & bacchus recipe, via smitten kitchen)

I like to make this in an oval ceramic dish, but a high-sided pyrex dish or pie plate also works well.

2 heaping c (12 oz, 360 g) sweet cherries, rinsed and drained
3 eggs
1/2 c (3 3/4 oz, 108 g) sugar
1/2 c butter (4 oz, 113 g), melted and cooled
1 c (4.5 oz, 130 g) flour
1/4 tsp salt
1 c milk (whole or low fat are fine - with that much butter skim would probably also work)
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tbsp kirsch (or rum)

Preheat the oven to 400 F. Grease the baking dish well with butter and add the cherries, distributing them evenly over the bottom of the dish. In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar and eggs until they are well mixed and lighten a bit in color. Gradually whisk in the butter, then add the flour all at once, along with the salt. Whisk until the mixture is smooth and thick (not lumpy). Add the milk a little at a time, whisking well to incorporate. (The mixture should be smooth and thin, like crepe or pancake batter.) Add the vanilla and kirsch and whisk to fully incorporate.

Pour the batter over the cherries in the baking dish (the fruit will move around a bit - no problem)and place the dish in the oven. Bake for 30-40 minutes until quite brown, puffy around the sides and set in the center. (I normally check with a sharp knife - it should come out fairly clean.) Cool on a wire rack for at least 15 minutes before serving, but it is also great at room temperature. It is just as good the next day for breakfast or cut into little one-cherry cubes for a snack. Really.

Serves 4 (with a little leftover for breakfast)